I'm having a hard time finding a WLB who fits what PC/JS tend to look for in a prospect. I feel like I can find something considerably wrong with all of them.

Khaseem Greene- Excellent instincts, great in coverage, good against the run, strong enough to block shed........slow (I can't see PC/JS drafting a slow LB. It just doesn't fit what I know about them.)

Arthur Brown- Excellent against the run, instinctive. Small and not great in coverage. I see more of a 3-4 ILB in brown.

Sio Moore- He doesn't have any major flaws but he doesn't do anything exceptionally well either in my opinion. Avg Size, Avg. speed, good strength, avg. instincts.

Zavier Gooden- He definitely has one thing that PC/JS covet, and that's speed. He's the fastest WLB in the draft and even had one of the fastest times if you consider Safeties as well. My main issue with Gooden is that he lacks strength in the running game. We struggled with this all year, and I feel Gooden is a sizeable downgrade vs Hill against the run. He'll help shore up the little underneath passing game, but I don't think he's built strong enough to be our WLB. He's also not instinctive in attack angles.

Those are the top 4 candidates that are repeatedly brought up in regards to the WLB position. So...I got to thinking, I am fairly confident PC/JS could look to a different position to find their WLB for 2013. Safety would be my guess. The reason for this is A) this is a very strong safety class & B) Safeties are natural WLB because they can cover & tackle.

To take this a step further, I really see TJ McDonald as a natural fit for what PC/JS would be looking for. Here's why:1) He has excellent height/weight/speed that we look for. 6'3 4.5 40.2) USC connection (PC is familiar with him)3) He's great against the run & block shedding. USC had him in the box a lot, and he can get off of 350lb OGs and make a tackle. He's actually very good in the run game. He's tough too. 4) He's very instinctive and good in coverage. Watch the USC vs Califonia tape 20135) He's pretty agile. Check out his 3 cone vs Greene and Moore. 6) He can rush the passer. He's pretty good at coming off the edge and hitting the QB. I covet that out of our WLB position, especially since I believe Quinn will be far more aggressive.

Last edited by lukerguy on Sun Mar 10, 2013 6:24 pm, edited 2 times in total.

I'm not a fan of using a 4th round pick or higher on a FS and switching him to OLB. Too much of a project to use a mid-round pick IMO. If we were to do that then I would much rather prefer to use a 6th or 7th round pick on Miami (FS) Ray-Ray Armstrong. Armstrong has good athletic ability and great size 6-3 227 for a (FS).

lukerguy wrote:I'm having a hard time finding a WLB who fits what PC/JS tend to look for in a prospect. I feel like I can find something considerably wrong with all of them.

Khaseem Greene- Excellent instincts, great in coverage, good against the run, strong enough to block shed........slow (I can't see PC/JS drafting a slow LB. It just doesn't fit what I know about them.)

Arthur Brown- Excellent against the run, instinctive. Small and not great in coverage. I see more of a 3-4 ILB in brown.

Sio Moore- He doesn't have any major flaws but he doesn't do anything exceptionally well either in my opinion. Avg Size, Avg. speed, good strength, avg. instincts.

Zavier Gooden- He definitely has one thing that PC/JS covet, and that's speed. He's the fastest WLB in the draft and even had one of the fastest times if you consider Safeties as well. My main issue with Gooden is that he lacks strength in the running game. We struggled with this all year, and I feel Gooden is a sizeable downgrade vs Hill against the run. He'll help shore up the little underneath passing game, but I don't think he's built strong enough to be our WLB. He's also not instinctive in attack angles.

Those are the top 4 candidates that are repeatedly brought up in regards to the WLB position. So...I got to thinking, I am fairly confident PC/JS could look to a different position to find their WLB for 2013. Safety would be my guess. The reason for this is A) this is a very strong safety class & B) Safeties are natural WLB because they can cover & tackle.

To take this a step further, I really see TJ McDonald as a natural fit for what PC/JS would be looking for. Here's why:1) He has excellent height/weight/speed that we look for. 6'3 4.5 40.2) USC connection (PC is familiar with him)3) He's great against the run & block shedding. USC had him in the box a lot, and he can get off of 350lb OGs and make a tackle. He's actually very good in the run game. He's tough too. 4) He's actually very instinctive and good in coverage. Watch the USC vs Califonia tape 20135) He's pretty agile. Check out his 3 cone vs Greene and Moore. 6) He can rush the passer. He's actually pretty good at coming off the edge and hitting the QB. I covet that out of our WLB position, especially since I believe Quinn will be far more aggressive.

I started a thread about McDonald a few days ago thinking the same thing. I think he would be a perfect 4th or 5th round pick if we don't solve our WLB problem in FA or earlier in the draft. I feel like there is potential for him to start in Kam's spot, backup Kam's spot, backup the WLB position or end up being our long term answer as a starting WLB. If he comes in and looks like a potential upgrade over Kam maybe Kam moves to the WLB position? By definition Pete's WLB can be smaller/lighter as he won't see as many lead blockers. He needs to be fast to chase down the play from the back side. McDonald could also be an upgrade in coverage as well as be a big hitter. I feel like he could be successful blitzing from the back side as well although he didn't have a llot of sacks in college.

This is the out of the box thinking our FO seems to hit homeruns with.

Here is CBS's overview of him.

Strengths: Looks the part of a traditional NFL safety, possessing broad shoulders, a trim middle and impressive overall musculature. Moved all around as part of USC's defense in 2012, lining up as a single centerfielder, a corner covering slot receivers, a blitzing linebacker up the middle or off the edge and in his more familiar two-deep package.Aggressive defender who attacks the line of scrimmage when he reads run. Physically takes on and shed blockers and is a lights-out hitter. Brings his hips to explode through the ballcarrier, yet wrapping his arms securely. Possesses good straight-line speed with a burst to close and the length to make tackles of ballcarriers seemingly out of his reach. Uses his height and physicality well to compete for jump balls. Good ball-skills. Dependable, no-nonsense player.

Weaknesses: Long, lanky build that makes him a step slow in transitioning. Has to gather himself out of his cuts, giving receivers room to gain separation. Seemed confused in Kiffin's scheme. Too often drifted out of position by attempting to read the quarterback's eyes, leaving huge gaps in the secondary for the high-octane passing attacks in the Pac-12 to exploit.

Had a generally underwhelming performance throughout the week of practice at the Senior Bowl and could be losing momentum as the draft approaches. Underwent surgery to his ankle (undisclosed) following 2010 spring.

Compares To: Kam Chancellor, SS, Seattle Seahawks -- While not quite as imposing as the 6-3, 232-pound Chancellor, McDonald's size and physicality is sure to intrigue teams looking for an enforcer against the running game and one athletic enough to handle the bigger hybrid receivers now running down the seam as tight ends in the NFL. Like Chancellor, a former free safety at Virginia Tech, McDonald's best fit in the NFL would be as an "in the box" type rather than playing over the top.

i hav'nt looked at a bunch of WLB's but the few i did i liked for whatever thats worth but i thought the best as far as being able to start and hold his own day one in my eyes was sio moore he was fast enough and strong enough to translate to the NFL in my opinion. Playing in our division you can't be light in the pants and preferably play with sum thump being able to fly to the line of scrimage and make your presence felt, he has the speed to be a be a pass rusher from time to time and i think moore has the build and can only add to his game under Norton jr. and Carroll.

Also if Khaseem Greene were faster i would prefer the hawks take him it would be like having a tim jennings in our front seven and the way the 12th man feeds off of turnovers it would be a match made in heaven